september2021 - 12

FEATURE
Does Working From Home Negat
By Doug Ramsthel
EVEN BEFORE THE pandemic some CPAs worked from home, running
their own small firms providing services for local businesses and
individuals. For CPAs who work for larger firms and were in an office
setting daily, shifting to remote work was a new frontier and one
that some people really enjoyed. Working away from the office has
its perks, like the ability to focus and remove workplace distractions,
such as office drop-ins, impromptu meetings, and office noises.
For many people, a perk of all meetings
taking place remotely has been the ability to
not just work from home, but also work from
relatives' homes, favorite vacation spots, or
even another country, so long as there was
strong dependable internet. Some workers have
gone so far as to make those favorite vacation
spots a new home.
Employers, eager to ensure continued
productivity and retain valuable employees,
have rushed in to support working away from
the office, making it easier than ever before to
be productive from anywhere. As businesses
make decisions about a return to workplaces
this summer or fall, those that are considering
allowing employees to continue to work
remotely will need to consider how it will
impact employees' benefits.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Benefits are sometimes limited or even very
restricted by geography. As an example, if
Kaiser is a company's primary medical plan,
moving to a location outside of where Kaiser is
offered, leaves an employee with no or very limited
medical coverage. Under a PPO plan, a less
densely populated area may have a very limited
network or perhaps out of network only coverage,
exposing both the employer and employee
to significantly increased claims costs. Disability
may function entirely differently from
state to state due to state-mandated disability
coverage. Also, there may be more simple limits
to the benefits program like participation in the
company wellness program, health fairs, or flu
vaccines offered on-site. Understanding these
limits and communicating these clearly to the
employee who is looking to relocate is extremely
important to managing employee expectations
and ultimately job satisfaction.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of differences
between states in not just taxes, but also
required benefits. State short-term disability
is a common difference. Some states require
employers to provide this and regulate how it
is to be provided. If an employee moves to one
of these states, like New York or California,
an employer will be required to provide the
appropriate disability coverage.
The statutory disability coverage can also
impact any benefits under disability in which
the employee may currently be enrolled. Some
states do not allow for the tax-deductibility of
H.S.A plans, which can be a bit of a shock for
an employee who has relied on these for tax
savings and any tax-free employer contributions.
In a place like Hawaii, benefit coverage,
employee contributions, and plan design are
regulated, requiring employers to provide coverage
to even part-time employees. For employers
new to a geographically diverse workforce,
knowing, understanding and executing a wide
variety of benefit plans can be overwhelming
and it is a maze that must be planned for in
advance before giving employees the green
light to pack their bags and relocate.
12 SEPTEMBER 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
THE TIME TO EMBRACE
TECHNOLOGY IS NOW
For the few companies who have not embraced
technology for enrolling employees in benefits
and managing changes to plans, now is the
time to just do it. For too long, employers have
assumed that not every employee will have
adequate technology access to use the HRIS/
Benefits Administration system, but almost
every employee does now with the advances
that have been made in mobile technology.
For companies that already use an HRIS/
Benefits Administration system, re-examine
just how efficient and user-friendly the benefits
administration system is.
A company's benefits administration system
needs to be clear and easy for employees to
understand and use. With the enhancements
and improvement of UX (user experience),
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september2021

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